Railway journal box vent



R. s. SAUNDERS 2,957,546

RAILWAY JOURNAL BOX VENT Filed April 25, 1957 Oct. 25, 1960 INVENTOR Kisser 5700x195 BY w ML ATTORNEYS United States Patent RAILWAY JOURNAL BOX VENT Robert G. Saunders, Afton, Va.

Filed Apr. 23, 1957, Ser. No. 654,510 1 Claim. (Cl. 18593) This invention relates to a railway journal box, and more particularly to a railway journal box having venting apparatus therein for maintaining atmospheric pressure within the journal box.

In the railway industry, it has been sought to provide a journal box having oil-tight seals both at the front opening, where access to the box is had, and at the rear, where the axle enters the journal box, so that the journal box can be lubricated with a substantial quantity of free oil in the bottom of the box and the use of waste eliminated. Dust guards have now been developed which elfectively form an oil-tight seal between the rear of the journal box and the rotating axle. Also, tight-fitting lids are now employed in conjunction with gaskets to close the front of the journal box and form an oil-tight closure.

In the movement of railway cars along rails, the journal not only rotates within the journal box, but also moves laterally with respect to the journal box. With both ends of the journal box sealed with oil-tight seals as described above, this lateral movement of the journal causes a pumping action which will result in extremes in pressure within the journal box, including partial vacuums and pressures in excess of atmospheric pressure which will tend to bring dust and dirt into the journal box and to force the oil past the dust guard or front lid, with resulting loss of the lubricatingoil from the journal box.

While previous vent means have been disclosed in railway journal boxes, they have generally included relatively direct passages from the interior of the. journal box to the outside atmosphere, so that dust and dirt from the outer atmosphere enter relatively freely into the journal box, resulting in clogging of the bearing and increased friction. These prior vent means were usually cast into the box so that they were not applicable to existing boxes.

A further disadvantage of the prior vent means for railway journal boxes is that, in that unloading railway cars containing bulk products such as coal or ore, by tippling, wherein the entire railway car is clamped and rotated by mechanism to a dumping position, the lubricating oil could flow out of the journal box through the relatively direct passage of the vent means, thus resulting in loss of lubricant with danger of subsequent overheating of the journal box.

It has now been found, however, that these problems and disadvantages can be largely eliminated by the invention, wherein a railway journal box having an oiltight seal at the rear formed by a flexible dust-guard and a lid closing the opening at the front of the journal box to form an oil-tight seal is provided with venting means at the upper surface of the box body having a labyrinthian, tortuous passageway which filters out dust and dirt. With the construction of the invention, gases freely pass into and out of the journal box to maintain atmospheric pressure therein. Further, a valve closure is provided which closes the venting passageway automatically when the railway car and journal box are rotated, durice venting apparatus for attachment to a railway journal box to maintain atmospheric pressure within the journal box.

A further object of the invention is to provide .a venting apparatus for attachment to a railway journal box such venting apparatus having a tortuous, labyrinthian passageway to effect precipitation of dust anddint from gases passing though the passageway.

A further object of the invention is to provide a venting apparatus for attachment to a railway journal box such venting apparatus having valve means for closing the vent in response to tippling of the railway car, to prevent lubricating oil from flowing out of the journal box through the vent.

These and further objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent upon reference to the following specification and claim and appended drawings wherein:

Figure l is a fragmentary vertical section through a railway journal box according to the invention, the journal box being shown generally in phantom lines;

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken along the lines 2.-2 in Figure 3 and showing a venting apparatus according to the invention; and

Figure 3 is a horizontal section taken along the lines 3-3 in Figure 2.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, a journal box is generally designated 10 and includes a box body having the conventional wedge and bearing therein. In order to provide access to the journal box for lubrication and maintenance, a front opening is provided and a pivoted lid 12-. This lid may engage a gasket to form an oil-tight sealing closure of the journal box opening.

At the rear of the journal box body 10 there is a. dust guard well 14 through which the axle of a railway car extends. Integral with the axle is a journal engaging the bearing in the journal box. The structure just described is a conventional journal box according to A.A.R. standards and specifications.

In order to form an oil-tight seal between the rear of the journal box body and the axle, a flexible dust guard is mounted in the dust guard well 14. This dust guard provides an oil-tight seal at the rear of the journal box, which, in conjunction with the oil-tight seal provided by the lid 12 permits the use of a substantial quantity of free oil as lubricant Within the box body and the elimination of the use of waste as a packing in the journal box.

Various flexible oil-tight dust guard seals are known and the particular seal used is not a part of the present invention. However, I prefer to use a seal of the type entitled Dust Guard shown in my copending application Serial No. 654,509, filed April 23, 1957.

The venting apparatus generally designated :16 is mounted in the top surface or wall 18 of box body and includes a circular cylindrical conduit or tube 20 extending downwardly through a hole 22 drilled in the top surface 18 of the box body. A valve closure in the form of a plate 24 is freely swingable about pivot 26. The pivot is located at the lower end of tube 20 at the portion of the tube nearest the rear of the journal box or inwardly with respect to the railway car as seen in Figure l. The valve closure 24 is gravity operated by means of a weight 28 mounted on its outer extremity.

Thus, when the railway car is tippled to unload bulk.

materials such as coal or ore by rotation of the entire railway car, the journal box shown in Figure 1 will rotate, say-counterclockwise so that when the rotation is sufficient that lubricating oil could pass out of the venting apparatus 16, the Weight 28 will pivot the valve closure 24 to close the lower end of tube 20.

When the railway car is tippled in the: other direction to rotate the journal box of Figure 1 in a clockwise direction, the lubricating oil will collect in the right hand end or rear of the journal box without danger of loss through the vent.

In order to correctly locate the pivot 26 for the proper closure ofthe tube 20, the tube will normally be welded in hole 22, although screw threads might also be employed.

Secured to the top of tube 20 is a hollow disc-shaped venting head having a top wall 30, a bottom wall 32 and a cylindrical side wall 34. The tube 20 opens into the venting head through a central opening 36 in the bottom wall. The bottom wall 32 of the venting head 36 is provided with a plurality of arcuate openings 38 near its outer periphery so that air or gas may pass freely into or out of the journal box through the openings 38, the hollow venting head and the tube 20.

Because the openings 38 are on the under side of the venting head and are relatively close to the top of the journal box, very little dust or dirt can enter the journal box through the venting device. If, however, due to excessively adverse operating conditions it becomes desirable to provide further safeguards against the entry of dust and dirt, the hollow venting head may be provided with a plurality of bafiles 40 extending between the top wall 30 and the bottom wall 32 and located between the openings 38 and the tube 20. These baffles 40 eifectively eliminate substantially all dust and dirt from the air entering the box.

As can be readily appreciated, one of the principal advantages of the venting device of the present invention is that it can be quickly and easily attached to existing journal boxes. The hole 22 may be drilled or tapped in the top of any journal box and the tube 20 welded or threaded in the hole 22 in a few minutes. The parts of the venting head may be stamped from sheet metal and the tube 20 may be standard pipe. Thus, the cost of producing the venting device of the present invention will be quite low.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The presentembodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claim rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claim are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed and'desired to be secured by United States Letters .Patent is:

A railway journal box vent comprising a vertical cylindrical hollow tube adapted to extend through a wall of a railway journal box, a circular flange extending outwardly from the upper end of said tube, said flange having a plurality of spaced curved openings formed adjacent the outer perimeter thereof, a vertical circular cylinder secured to the outer perimeter of said flange and extending upwardly therefrom, a circular top plate secured to the upper end of said circular cylinder and closing said upper end of said circular cylinder, a plurality of inner vertical baflies extending along portions of a circle having its center on the axis of said hollow tube, said inner vertical baffles extending from said flange upwardly. to said top plate and having spaces therebetween, and a plurality of outer vertical baffles extending along portions of a circle having its center on the axis of said hollow tube, said outer vertical bafiles being locatedoutwardly from said inner vertical bafiies, and extending from said flange upwardly to said top plate and having spaces therebetween said outer vertical batlles extending across said spaces between said inner vertical bafiies, said inner vertical baffles extending across said spaces between said outer vertical baflies.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 394,034 Van Alstine Dec. 4, 1888 668,866 Young Feb. 26, 1901 1,367,164 Miller Feb. 1, 1921 1,820,530 Davies Aug. 25, 1931 1,859,479 Thwaits May 24, 1932 2,613,013 Van Pelt Oct. 7, 1952 2,764,172 Strayer Sept. 25, 1956 2,800,245 Doyle July 23, 1957 2,808,276 Williams Oct. 1, 1957 

